Mother of 1-Year-Old Boy Shot in Brooklyn Speaks

Cherise Miller, the mother of 1-year-old Antiq Hennis (pictured), who was killed by a gunman’s stray bullet in Brooklyn Sunday, recalled her final moments with her son Tuesday, according to the Daily News.

“I went in my mother’s room and he’s jumping on the bed, laughing,” Miller said. I didn’t yell at him. I was just sitting there. I just sat and I watched him.”

A few minutes later, Antiq’s father took him for a ride in a stroller through Brownsville Sunday evening. The two were approached by a gunman who fired four shots at them. One of them hit the child in the head, killing him. The killer managed to escape and remains on the lam. He used a .45 caliber handgun.

Watch a news report about Hennis here:

According to officials, Anthony Hennis, Antiq’s father, was likely the intended target. Anthony has an extended criminal history, with 23 arrests, mostly drug-related. The 22-year-old father is also a known member of the Crips gang. Locals in the area believe a heated gang rivalry was the motive for the shooting.

After initially refusing to cooperate with police, Anthony met with Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes Tuesday.

“We’re on top of this,” Hynes told reporters after leaving Hennis’ home. “That’s all I can tell you…I tried to console them. It’s very, very difficult in these circumstances.”

Anthony had to be restrained by family members, after he reportedly attempted to attack photographers outside his home Tuesday morning.

Cherise also recalled how Anthony came to pick up Antiq from her house Sunday.

“They were headed to his grandmother’s house, three blocks away,” she said outside her home. “I never saw him [Antiq] again.”

As for Antiq’s killer, community activists plan on increasing the reward for his capture from $12,000 to $22,000 at a press conference Tuesday, near the area where Antiq was killed. They also plan on asking for more police presence in the neighborhood, fearful that Anthony will take vengeance in to his own hands.